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Sierra High Route – American Adventure


Allie Comeau on the Sierra Blogging Post had to include a Sierra trip as one of her Top 10 American Adventures.

Good call.

It’s on our list of the best hikes in North America. Similar to the famed John Muir Trail, but without wasting so much time and energy descending each day. On the Sierra High Route you try to stay HIGH.

9. Hiking the Sierra High Route, California: The 195-mile stretch between King’s Canyon and Yosemite National Park is not for the faint of heart. This trail, through the country’s most rugged terrain, is challenging to say the least.

This one is dangerous. The expert is Steve Roper.

The Sierra High Route (also called the Roper Route) is a cross-country hiking route, 195 miles (314 km) long, through the Sierra Nevada. It was scouted by Steve Roper and described by him in his book Sierra High Route: Traversing Timberline Country (1982; 1997). …

Wikipedia

sierra-high-route

I’m going to need Steve’s guidebook.

Amazon – The Sierra High Route: Traversing Timberline Country

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4646km through China on foot

A brilliant time lapse video of what happens to a trekker in China … who does not shave.

Christoph Rehage from Hanover, Germany, is a cinematographer and student of China Studies.

Click PLAY or watch his China video on YouTube.

November 9th 2007 – November 13th 2008

one year on foot – 4646km through China

unlimited beard & hair growth

– All of the distance from Beijing to Ürümqi has been completed solely on foot, straight good old walking. There are instances where you can see me in the video sitting on a plane or riding a boat, but those are during breaks I had to take from walking, either to sort out bureaucracy issues or to take care of some personal things. …

– The songs I used in the video are 1) Zhu Fengbo – “Olive Tree” and 2) The Kingpins – “L’aventurier” – visit the Kingpins website if you want to know more, they are very cool I think.

– This is not a strict “1 pic a day” video, because I wanted to make it a bit more alive by adding some additional movement. Sometimes during the film you would follow me turn around, or something would happen in the background. I tried to capture these moments to make the video more interesting.

more information on his website – The Longest Way

(via vagabondish on Twitter)

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reserve an Alberta campsite online

Rather than spend $25million on a scandal tainted advertising campaign to attract tourists, maybe my home Province should spend more resources on their web presence.

Here’s a success story.

Almost all the campsites available on the first day of Alberta’s new online reservation system have been snapped up for the May long weekend.

The province launched the reservation website on Friday, attracting 146,000 visits within the first three hours, with about 23 per cent of the traffic coming from outside Canada.

People can book reservations for more than 2,800 campsites in 25 popular campgrounds in the province. They can also research nearby trails, fire pit locations, proximity to washrooms and see a 360-degree panoramic view of each campsite and campground. …

Eager campers overload new Alberta online reservation system

Site looks good.

reserve-alberta-campgrounds

Reserve Alberta Parks

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cool bicycle touring tent – GHISALLO 1


I could use one of these.

bike-touring-tent

Built for bicycle touring, the freestanding Ghisallo features a garage! The side vestibule designed to accommodate bicycles upright, and without removing panniers. Full coverage fly keeps bicycle and other gear out of view. The entry vestibule has plenty of space for personal gear and the efficient floor plan and interior volume allows ample room for sleeping, sitting up and loving life. Superlight fabrics reduce weight and Atlas 7001 poles stand strong in stormy weather. Guaranteed watertight construction.

MSRP: 360.00

Minimum Weight 3.66 lb / 1.66 kg

Mountain Hardwear – SUPERLIGHT : GHISALLO 1

buy it from Amazon

via — I assume — Kraig on the The Adventure Blog

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best hike blog STATS

In the 5 months since we moved this blog to WordPress.com from crappy Bluehost, the number of visitors has almost recovered.

best-hike-stats

It was a good move.

I highly recommend WordPress.com. It’s free. It works. It’s updated continually. It’s open source. Though the features are limited, they are enough for most bloggers.

Search for “best hike” on Google. We have the top 3 hits.

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Ibn Battuta, greatest explorer ever?

I watched the first two episodes of a British TV documentary series where Tim Mackintosh-Smith retraces the footsteps of 14th Century Moroccan scholar Ibn Battuta, who covered 75,000 miles, 40 countries and three continents in a 30-year odyssey. He was islam’s and perhaps the world’s greates traveller.

Excellent!

Click PLAY or watch an introduction on YouTube.

Leave a comment if you find those full episodes posted online.

Next I’d like to see this movie.

Journey to Mecca is an IMAX® dramatic and documentary feature that tells the amazing story of Ibn Battuta, the greatest explorer of the Old World, following his first pilgrimage between 1325 and 1326 from Tangier to Mecca.

Narrated by Ben Kingsley.

Click PLAY or watch the movie trailer on YouTube.

official home page – Journey to Mecca Giant Screen

What a story!

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top 10 hikes in California

It’s difficult for anyone to compile a list of best hikes in California. There are too many good choices.

But Best Hikes California gives it shot:

1. Upper Yosemite Falls
2. Mt. Shasta
3. Mt. Tallac
4. Half Dome
5. Vernal Falls
6. Tomales Point
7. Cloud’s Rest
8. Four Mile Trail
9. Mosaic Canyon
10. Stovepipe Sand Dunes

Top Ten Hikes in California

Stovepipe Sand Dunes look great. The walk is below sea level.

stovepipe-dunes
more photos

I’m considering a hiking trip to Death Valley in May.

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40 Favorite Hikes of All Time

Josh Steinitz on the NileGuide blog posted his 40 favorite hikes of all time.

path-of-the-gods
larger version – Path of the Gods, Italy – flickr – fractalflow

It’s a good list. Click through for a photo and quickie description of each.

I’ve attempted to include a good balance of trails in North America and around the world, and to feature hikes that take in mountains, canyons, culture, jungle and tundra.

1. Buckskin Gulch/Paria Canyon

2. Kalalau Trail, Kauai

3. Cusin to Zuleta, Ecuador

4. Rae Lakes Loop, Kings Canyon NP, California

5. Virgin Narrows, Zion NP, Utah

6. Coast Walk, Tofino, B.C.

7. “W” route, Torres del Paine NP, Chile

8. Baseline Creek, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska

9. Mt. Whitney, California

10. Everest Base Camp, Nepal

11. Mt Kenya

12. Mt Kilimanjaro

13. Picos de Europa, Spain

14. Mt Lyell, Yosemite NP

15. Tombstone Mountains, Yukon Territory

16. Cinque Terre, Italy

17. Pico Espejo to Los Nevados, Venezuela

18. Queen Charlotte Track, New Zealand

19. Basaseachi Falls, Copper Canyon, Mexico

20. Tongariro Crossing, New Zealand

21. Path of the Gods, Amalfi Coast, Italy

22. Dusy Basin, Kings Canyon NP, California

23. Berg Lake Trail, Canadian Rockies

24. Cirque of the Towers, Wind River Mountains, Wyoming

25. Tomales Point, California

26. Payangan walk, Bali

27. Canyon Creek Lakes, Trinity Alps, California

28. Superstition Peak, Arizona

29. Peek-a-boo Loop, Bryce Canyon

30. Beehive Basin, Big Sky, MT

31. Bald Mountain, Jasper NP, Alberta

32. North Kaibab Trail, Grand Canyon

33. Taquesi Pass and Inca Road, Bolivia

34. The Lost Coast, California

35. The Haute Route: Chamonix to Zermatt

36. St. Marys to Lake McDonald, Glacier NP

37. Nelson Lakes, New Zealand

38. Wheeler Peak, Great Basin NP, Nevada

39. Devil’s Garden, Arches NP

40. Chicago Basin

see the details and a photo of each – NileGuidance: A Travel Blog – Top 40 Favorite Hikes of All Time

basaseachi-falls
Basaseachi Falls, Mexico – larger original – Paco Espinoza – flickr

superstition-mountain
sibhusky2 – flickr – Superstition Mountain Arizona – larger version